Chicken and Spinach Pasta Bake

Cheesy Chicken and Spinach Pasta Bake is so easy and full of Italian flavor. It's even easier to make if you have cooked chicken and onions stocked in your freezer!

⏲️ Time needed

This recipe takes about an hour and 15 minutes to prepare. It calls for softened cream cheese, cooked pasta and chicken, and thawed spinach; so preparing those ingredients will take about 30 minutes; the casserole takes about 45 minutes to bake.

🥘 Ingredients

• rigatoni
• olive oil
• onion
• frozen spinach
• cooked cubed chicken
• Italian-style diced tomatoes
• cream cheese
• salt
• pepper
• shredded mozzarella cheese

🌾 Adaptations for dietary restrictions

You can use gluten-free noodles for this dish.

📋 Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375°F and lightly spray the bottom of a 9x13" baking dish.

Drain the chopped spinach well, pressing between paper towels. In a large mixing bowl, add drained spinach, sautéed onions, cooked rigatoni, cooked chicken, diced tomatoes, cream cheese, salt and pepper; mix together thoroughly.

Spoon the mixture into the baking dish. Sprinkle shredded mozzarella cheese evenly over top, then cover and bake for 30 minutes; uncover and continue baking 15 minutes longer or until bubbly.

💭 Tips

Put the spinach in the fridge overnight to thaw.

📖 Recipe

Chicken and Spinach Pasta Bake

Cheesy Chicken and Spinach Pasta Bake is so easy and full of Italian flavor. It's even easier to make if you have cooked chicken and onions stocked in your freezer!

5 from 1 vote

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Prep Time 30 mins

Cook Time 45 mins

Total Time 1 hr 15 mins

Course Main Dish

Cuisine Italian

Servings 8 servings

Calories 393

Ingredients

  

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• 8 ounces rigatoni, cooked al dente and drained
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 onion, sautéed
• 10 ounce pkg. frozen spinach, thawed
• 3 cups cooked cubed chicken
• 14 ounce can Italian-style diced tomatoes, undrained
• 8 ounce pkg. cream cheese, softened
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon pepper
• 1½ cups mozzarella cheese, shredded
• non-stick cooking spray

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Instructions

• Preheat oven to 375°F. Lightly spray bottom of 9x13" baking dish. Drain chopped spinach well, pressing between paper towels.
• In a large mixing bowl, add drained spinach, sautéed onions, cooked rigatoni, cooked chicken, diced tomatoes, cream cheese, salt and pepper; mix together thoroughly.
• Spoon mixture into baking dish. Sprinkle shredded mozzarella cheese evenly over top.
• Cover and bake for 30 minutes; uncover and continue baking 15 minutes longer or until bubbly.

Notes

If you do not have cooked chicken and onions in the freezer, you can sauté those while you are cooking the pasta. Allow time for the cream cheese to soften and the spinach to thaw while you are preparing the pasta, chicken, and onions.

For a vegetarian option, omit the chicken and add sautéed mushrooms and diced red peppers or other vegetables.

Nutrition per serving

Calories: 393 calCarbohydrates: 28 gProtein: 25 gFat: 20 gSodium: 507 mgFiber: 3 gSugar: 4 g

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🥗 Side dishes

Simple sides are best with Chicken and Spinach Pasta Bake. Your meat and carbs are covered, so I'd suggest a simple side to round out the spinach in the casserole:

• Seasoned Green Beans
• Green Salad
• Green Peas with Butter
• Caprese Salad

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